I'm curious what gauges you monitor while driving and why?? Which gauge do you rarely look at?? Do you watch the oil pressure and voltage gauges while driving?? Oh.. and which other gauge would you like to see.. manifold pressure?? etc..

Steve (k2we) Dobbs Ferry, NY

Just uncovered the car after 12 days of freezing rain & snow.. It's 49 degrees outside.. feels like spring!!

 

I, personally, check every guage I have in the car. But I just like to check and make sure everything's running like it should.

 

I like the digital readout for mph. My needle speedometer is blocked a bit because I drive with the steering wheel all the way down. Don't pay much attention to the oil & battery volts. I probably will when the car gets older. I need a gauge that tells me when a cop is in the area. Oh wait, that's a radar detector I need to get one of those too.

 

I check the main gauges first and then glance at the small gauges to see if they are functioning and don't check them again apart from an occasional glance. In my opinion, the temperature and check engine light are the most important and the oil pressure and amp gauge are secondary.

The small gauges are a retro touch, which is fine, but the engine's worst enemy is excessive heat and if your oil pressure is waning the check engine light is bright and right in front of you. Mind you, oil pressure and amps are important and can tell you about an oil leak or a need to check your level, maybe if pressure is low, and the amp gauge can warn you about a failing battery, but temp and check engine can't be ignored because they are right in your face.

If your temp is in the red, stop immediately; if the oil pressure is down check your level soon. If check engine comes on, get to a dealer quickly while putting as little demand on your engine as possible after you check your gas cap's status, some lights have come on because it was not tight enough.

In the 70s, most manufacturers removed the oil pressure and amp gauges because their sensors could become faulty and alarm the driver needlessly, so they went to the temp and gas gauges only, with all others monitored by leds. The Z's retro gauges are not cosmetic, but their utility is marginal, by the time they registered a problem, your engine could be damaged already.

Excessive temperature is the greatest enemy of our aluminum engines, if your oil level is low, temp will rise and you will be warned also. An engine failure in the making, usually indicates increased heat, which could be coolant or oil loss.

Don't rely too much on the secondary gauges, they are far slower than the temp gauge and the leds.

Boomer--use it or lose it, I don't care.

 

I look at the digital readout for the mph as a combo. I find it very useful in resdiential area's when I have to watch out for "The Man".... ;-)

 

I've left the multi-function display on the tire pressure monitor (usually rear), since the weather is cold and crappy in Chicago. I like to know when my tires are cold or warmed-up. Primarily, I watch the tack and estimate my speed. I occasionally glance at the speedo to verify that I'm not speeding too badly.